The difference between top class athletes and world class athletes is mostly mental isn't it? It's that additional 1%. You train your body to surf, so why not your mind too? I know for a fact that I'm a better surfer when I feel confident, fit etc. If a little doubt creeps in, I'm slower to my feet, I don't paddle as hard and generally have a bad surf. It's no secret that Kelly rates his mind as way more important that his body for surfing, and that guy has won a dozen world titles, he's the oldest and youngest world title winner, he's won more events than anyone else....do you need more proof that it's mind over matter?

In terms of NLP, it's an interesting debate. I've done a bit of this stuff with work, and whilst I'm far from convinced it's a science, I do think it can help improve confidence, self awareness, communication and things like that. I'd also argue that a lot of it is common sense.

From personal experience, I can vouch for visualisation working. When I was coming back from a knee injury a while ago, I was really struggling to get my front foot right underneath me, so I started imagining what I wanted to do as I stood up. It worked!

Extracting patterns sounds painful. Most surfers learn the same way... from watching others/watching surf movies/tips from mates, etc., and applying those lessons to their own surfing. Anyone ever involuntarily "moved" while watching a surf movie? (No., not your bowels, moving with the surfer on screen). If so, what was happening there? If you can visualise yourself doing some aspect of surfing, you're probably not too far from actually doing it, as our brains learn from those repeated patterns whether we actually do them in reality or not. N.L.P. has a whole host of techniques to accomplish this, amongst other things. But hey, it might not be "scientifically proven" by "the experts" (Especially the ones on here). How is it going Laurence? Any takers yet?

Thats exactly right Phil, I would prefer the process of unconscious assimilation for use in learning patterns, and there is more to the process than merely copying movements. However that is an essential part of it,to feel it in your body while you imagine it and further processes can increase the speed of assimilation. Although this is a process to be used in later workshops as there must be plenty of preliminary practice of more fundamental skills which need to be practised to improve the effectiveness of the secondary training. It looks like there are plenty of people interested in the concept of a workshop inspite of the feedback from the trolls, I never cease to wonder why people bother to waste their energy on negativity. If you don't like it turn it off, don't watch it and then shout at a machine.

With regards to the tm of a colloquialism not that dissimilar to the use of magic seaweed as a trading name and the use of the TM is merely to identify that when it is mentioned we are referring to the process of mind coaching for surfers rather than simply dreaming of riding a barrel somewhere in the world.